I try to get an assessment of my class on the first day. Our school has a diverse population not only in age but in cultural and educational backgrounds as well. Interestingly enough, the diversity mirrors the industry that the students are pursuing a career in. I give the students a needs assessment questionaire and an ungraded quiz so both the student and I can get a read on what their strengths and weaknesses are. I also adjust the length of my lectures and demonstrations.A younger class gets restless in long lectures. I will deliver it in two or three mini lectures with tasks or demonstrations in between. The biggest help is a strong sense of empathy. I know I need to have the people around me to be caring and respectful. My students deserve that from me.
Hi Nicold,
You make a key point about letting the students know you care about their success. By developing rapport with the students they know you care and caring helps to keep them motivated to succeed. Keep up the good work.
Gary
Understanding a learner's characteristics helps in the instructional planning process because it helps you cater to your students needs better, especially if you have a majority of students that learn in a certain manner, you can alter the way you teach to include more techniques of lets say a visual learner, while still employing other techniques for other learners. It also helps students feel that you actually care about them learning when you go the extra distance to find out how they learn.
Hi Kay,
Well said concerning the learning preferences. By offering a variety of deliveries you are going to work in the different preferences at different times throughout the course. Teaching the psychology course you know well the impact of not only learning preferences but multiple intelligences on the cognitive processing of students. You have a clear understanding of how this all works and I know your students are benefiting from your planning efforts.
Gary
Basicly learner preference is divided into visual, audio, tactile. In my school the majority of students are either visual or tactile. (I have 1 of my classes take a learning preference test to validate this). Based on their learning preference I use a variety of teaching methods to keep their interest and motivate them to learn. My college success course involves "videos", group, hands on applications. Unfortunately, my psychology course has lecture as a base but includes 2 movies and 4 self evaluations i.e. right vs left brain, personality, stress, learning preference. Understanding your students preference helps to build a course that that not only teaches but engages.
Understanding the characteristics of the learners on your class can help you construct your learning activities to address and best utilize those characteristics. It will also help in your interactions with the students if you have an understanding of their frustrations, support systems, personal circumstances, etc.
Hi George,
Great example of providing instructional support to someone that needs it. You took the time to show this person that she was valued and that she had much to offer. You then played to her strengths while shoring up the areas she needed help with.
Great job.
Gary
Since my classes tend to be small this is the first thing that occurs during my first week. I can assess problems the students will have (whether they are aware of it or not) fairly quickly after their "Get to Know Me" session.
One of my students was a 60 year old woman who had fears because her whole class was less then 25 years of age. I focused on her natural skills of confidence and experience from life to overcome learning new things like operating a camera.
I had to find ways to make the information accessible. I also found out that she could take tests well but when it came to physical tests she was scared of looking foolish in front of others. But I kept encouraging her and she turned out to be one of my best students.
If you know what their needs are, you can target your delivery to satisfy those needs.
I espesially appreciated the heirarchy of needs being represented. I had not seen it since my senior year in college.
Hi Darron,
Thanks for this insight on how your gauge students' responses to the upcoming assignments in your meat fabrication class. The students need to know how to break down the meat into cuts that will meet the needs of the customers and if they don't have that knowledge or are not comfortable in doing such they are going to have some challenges in their work. By getting them settled in and comfortable you can work them through your course.
Gary
Hi Kay,
You are correct about providing customized instruction for each student even though there are 30 students in the class. By planning and organizing your instruction around their needs you are doing just that. You are having an impact on their lives and by targeting the different learning preferences you are helping them to be successful as their prepare to enter their career field in these stressful and challenging times.
Gary
Hi Drew,
This is a great strategy for reaching your students. You are creating a knowledge base for yourself from which you can pull ideas for meeting the individual needs of your students. You are customizing instruction even though you have an entire class to do it for. Plus, this makes teaching more fun because you are constantly trying to be creative in your instructional planning.
Gary
Gary,
By watching their reactions & body language during lectures, helps me gauge their willingness to accept the class material. I teach meat fabrication in a culinary school, & not everyone can handle the realities of butchering meat, so, by watching student's reactions, their body language & listening to their comments & questions, I can usually gauge how each student is going to need to be taught a particular part of the class
I teach psychology, therefore I believe it is essential to understand your students in order to facilitate their success. This can be easier said than done when faced with a class of 30 or more. Each of us is unique, and in today's world, faces a variety of challenges. In my state--Michigan--and my school the economy and fear of the future are very present. Failure is not an option for many of my students. I have to know how to help them learn--audio--visual--tactile (the majority) and what obstacles they have to overcome to succeed. In short I have to know more than just their name (although that is important). I have to know THEM as a person and a student.
I make it a point to learn every students name by the first week of class. I also encourage open discussion in order to get a feel for the different personality types. that way I can create different methods in order to reach each student based on thier indevidual learning needs. If there are tqenty different students than there are twenty different ways or tactics needed to be used in order to reach all of the students, even if the material is the same.
Hi Darron,
How do you get to know the characteristics of your students? What methods have helped you to work through the beginning of the course so you can gain this information?
Gary
Understanding those characteristics can help an instructor effeiciently & effectively plan his/her courses to meet the specific needs & expectations of students attending that course
Better ability to help them succeed in their learning process. Helping them reach their potential and personal goals.
R.
Its a great way to plan for a class. Whether you have all recent high school graduates, adult learners, or a mix of both, you can really zero in and present and direct in way that fits all needs
Hi Earl,
What a great story about professional growth. By "reading" your students over the years you have been able to expand your instructional delivery options until you are reaching all of your students with your instructional style.
Gary
